my first unit

7th Communication Battalion



7th Communication Battalion Mission Statement:

Provide communication support to a Component Headquarters (HQ), a Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) Command Element (CE), or a MEF Forward (FWD) CE, or a Component HQ deployed simultaneously with a MEF CE and MEF (FWD) CE, or two MEF (FWD) CEs. Provide support to two Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) CEs (three, if structure is adjusted).

I'm not kidding, that really is the mission statement, I swiped it off the 7th Comm website. It's perfect example of a government-ese sentence full of mysterious Marine Corps acronyms. Basically, 7th Comm is full of fancy satellites and communication equipment so everybody can talk to everybody else out on the battlefield. As far as I can tell, the last time 7th Comm actually set foot on a battlefield as a battalion was back in Vietnam. Right now, we hang out on Okinawa and keep our satellites in working order in case our turn to deploy comes up.

Since my MOS is supply, I'm part of Headquarters Company, along with the administration office, the armory, the company office, S-4, S-3 Training, and some other random sections. (Sorry guys) We are by far the smallest company which means we all fit one floor in the barracks and we know everybody else.

7th Comm goes on lots of deployments, usually the same ones each year. Since I've been here, they have sent Marines on exercises to Australia, the Philippines, Korea, Thailand, Alaska, and Korea again. I was supposed to go to Korea but I got booted off the detachment. 7th Comm also sends individual Marines to Iraq and Kuwait periodically. I would have liked to have gone to the Middle East too but I was told it's highly unlikely for them to pull a supply Marine from a communication battalion when there are supply battalions with hundreds of supply Marines on the island.

Okinawa is a tiny island about two hours away from Tokyo by plane, it is closer to China and Taiwan than it is to mainland Japan. In the summer it is disgustingly hot and sticky, especially when you are wearing cammies, but it's good beach weather. In the winter, it can get really chilly at night. There are lots of fun places to go if you can get to them. Most lance corporals and below aren't allowed to have cars so buddies with cars are a hot commodity. If you don't have a friend with wheels, taxis (known as honchos) are always around if you feel like dropping $70 or $80 one way. The Green Line, a bus line that travels between the Marine Corps bases, is also an option but it doesn't go to Kadena Air Base or stop anywhere in between bases.

Also, since lance corporals and below can't stay out after midnight, our choice of liberty activities is restricted. You wouldn't think so but this rules out overnight camping trips, overnight stays at beach resorts, overnight stays at friends' houses, and going to any night spot that is far away. You have to leave so early it kind of defeats the purpose of going in the first place. So why go far away? At Camp Hansen, our only local option for food, shopping, and nightlife is a dump known as Kin or Kinville. The food, which consists mostly of tacos and taco-rice-and-cheese, doesn't always get along with your stomach. There's nothing as far as shopping goes, unless you like sports jerseys the size of bedsheets. The bars and clubs cater mostly to drunk, horny Marine males. "Buy me drink me" establishments line the streets. Basically, the men go in, buy the EMPLOYEES (Philippina girls) drinks so they will do things for them. I'm not trying to say that the town of Kin is trashy, just the part right outside the gate, the part that is "for" Marines.

The capital city of Naha is really nice and I've been lots of good places down there. The first thing I did on the island was the World's Largest Tug-of-War festival they have in Naha every year. Another time our company sponsored a battlesites tour so we could see the various important WWII locations on the island. At other times I saw an old castle, the botanical gardens, and a couple beaches. My consolation prize for not going to Korea was a spot on an Army-sponsored "Unit Morale" trip to mainland Japan to climb Mt. Fuji. The night before the climb, four of us invaded Tokyo, ate at the Hard Rock Cafe and arrived back on base in time to get an hour and a half of sleep before attacking the mountain. But that's a whole other story!

Everyone who has left my supply shop for units in the United States has said that their new duty station is much better than 7th Comm. If I was of a rank higher than a sergeant, or if I was a married corporal or sergeant, I think Okinawa (and maybe even 7th Comm) would be a pretty good place to be. For lance corporals and below or for NCOs living in the barracks, life can be a little rough. Maybe it's just 7th Comm, I don't know. There were a lot of fun things to do and a lot of good people but the bad things and bad people often overshadowed the good and that's a real shame.



Photography Page: See pictures of my Okinawa adventures!